Mad World
by kohakushina
Summary: Five years after the attack of Kyuubi and seven years before the first Naruto series had happened. The Inbetween events inspired from the song Kanashimi wo Yasashisa Wa.


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**Disclaimer: I am neither the creator nor the owner of both the anime series (Naruto) and the song (Mad World). Both are licensed and copyrighted by their respective creators and owners, so do not sue me.**

Note: It's my very first fiction (a Naruto-centric song fiction to be exact) so be friendly. I do accept constructed criticism to improve my writings since this fiction is not well written.

**Warning: There's at least a minimal angst in the plot.**

Written: February 11, 2007

Finished: February 12, 2007

Self-Edited: February 12, 2007

**Summary: **A Naruto-centric song fiction. Five years after attack of the nine-tailed beast, Kyuubi, and seven years before the first Naruto series had happened. Several in-between events inspired from the song Kanashimi wo Yasashisa Ni (悲しみをやさしさに) by 'little by little' (seen in episodes 54-77).

**MAD WORLD**

_All around me _

_are familiar faces_

_Worn out places, _

_Worn out faces_

Every afternoon, a scrawny mistakenly three year old blond boy, who was apparently at five, usually walked and watched kids playing around the playground as he took the swing alone. As usually, today, he saw eight kids who were playing around the playground.

At that moment, he wanted to play along with them but, at the same time, he was afraid. It was his instinct not to play with other children for he was an orphan—an abandoned child. He lived in the Orphanage House, which a caretaker, who supposed to care, did not care about him unlike with the other orphans.

He was all alone.

He started to swing as he watched the children picked their seeker. He forcefully pushed with his body as the swing loudly squeaked. The seeker started to count from ten with his eyes covered by the tree trunk. The seven kids ran away from him as they looked for their hiding place. They stopped to move from their places as the seeker said: "ONE!"

_Bright and early _

_for the daily races_

_Going nowhere, _

_Going nowhere_

The seeker had begun to seek for his seven friends who were hiding from every corner of the playground. He started to run as he caught one of his friends. The two kids were laughing as they raced towards the tree. The blond boy, from the swing, wanted to tag along with them but he could not since he was an orphan as he looked away from them.

"HOY!" The seeker called the blond boy's attention as he flinched from the swing. The blond boy slowly looked at the seeker.

"Play with us!"

The blond boy could not believe to himself that someone wanted to play with him. He left the swing as he approached the other boy. They continued to play hide-and-seek with him as a seeker. All late afternoon, the nine children were playing nonstop at the playground.

For the first time, the blond haired orphan boy had finally felt the happiness. Now, he knew the feeling of having friends although it was not long enough when the parents fetched them. The blond boy smiled at their parents. But in return, he was scolded by them.

_Their tears are filling_

_up their glasses_

_No expression, _

_No expression_

"You, filthy demon! Leave our children alone!"

This was what he feared to be called a demon. He was accused for being a demon since he was an orphan. He fought his tears from falling as he watched the kids departed without saying goodbyes. Again, he was alone with the swing.

He ran away from the playground. He did not know where he was going as his feet continued to run their own. He stopped as he sat at the corner of a stand. He cried, not caring that his stomach was crumbling, as he drowsed that night.

"Hoy, kid. Are you all right?"

The dull blue eyes slowly opened as an old man was waking him from his sleep. Instantly, the blond boy moved away and he waited for any punishments that he would receive.

"…"

"…"

_Hide my head I want _

_to drown my sorrows_

_No tomorrow, _

_No tomorrow_

"Kid, are you okay?"

The blond boy stared at the thin eyes of the old man. His eyes were sincerely worried. The boy quickly stood as he apologized for the disturbances that he created. Hoping, he could run away from the old man but his stubborn little friends suddenly produced a loud growling sound.

"Hahaha…" The boy was shocked as the old man laughed at him. It was worst than being called a demon. He could not take it anymore as he silently cried in front of the old man.

The old man was terrified. It was just a compliment that made the boy cried. It was his fault that he offended the boy for a mere laugh. He wiped the boy's tears with his towel.

"I feel bad that I had offended you, little one, here eat all you can with one of my finest: Miso Ramen!"

_And I find it kind of funny_

_I find it kind of sad_

_These dreams in which I'm dying,_

_Are the best I've ever had_

The boy was beyond stunned from the event that happened today. The old man was apologizing to him as if he was the one who made him cry. All the elder people, whom he met, were calling him usually names. But, he was the only elder who saw him as a real person. He felt like crying not from sadness but from joy.

"Arigato, Ojii-san! Itadakimasu!"

He never felt so happy in his life that he greedily ate the ramen that the old man offered to him. The old man smiled at him. The boy continued to dig in the ramen as he ate several bowls without charges. Even though, the old man would lose his business, at least, he made a child smile.

All day, the boy kept on eating the ramen as if he had not eaten in centuries. The old man had sensed it. Every bowl was clean without any morsel of soup, meat, vegetables, and noodles. But the order was stopped as the boy ran off without saying anything but: "Gomen nasai"

_I find it hard to tell you,_

_I find it hard to take_

_When people run in circles_

_it's a very very_

_Mad World, Mad World_

The old man would never ever know the name of the blond boy. He felt a great loss as he never asked the name of the boy. He sighed as he continued his newly opened stand 'Ichiraku'.

The boy ran off again, even though the old man was the very first person who accepted him. He could not accept himself to have that plenty of ramen to satisfy his hunger without paying the old man. He vowed that he would pay him but he did not have any money.

He walked around the alley as he was thinking how he would get some money. He noticed three ninjas were throwing several kunai from different target spots. All of the ninjas had given remarks from their sensei as they had successfully thrown the kunai to the target posts. He was fascinated at the skills and, at the moment, he was thrilled from the acknowledgements from their sensei.

"Oh, I wished I was a ninja…"

_Children waiting for the day _

_they feel good_

_Happy Birthday, _

_Happy Birthday_

He happily hummed for what he had experienced and he had seen today. First, an old man gave him free meals. Second, the ninjas were acknowledged by an elder, who was their sensei. He was hoping for another excitement event that would eventually happen.

He went to the academy as he watched several people practicing their knowledge and skills with ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu. He imitated the hand signs that he saw from the ninjas-in-training. He was hoping that he could produce any form of jutsu that he saw but nothing appeared.

He continued to watch the young ninjas performed their jutsu. He took a deep breathe but nothing happened again. He was quite sad at the outcome but he still would give it a try when he was old enough to enter in the academy.

He would become a ninja.

_And they feel the way _

_that every child should_

_Sit and listen, _

_Sit and listen_

"So much for an audience"

Unknowingly to the boy, the people from the academy were glaring at him. They were hoping that the boy did not come so they would properly perform their ninja skills. They started to walk away from the demon as they found another training spot.

The boy seemed to feel that they were going to another training spot. Not that he wanted to argue but he was alone again. No one was paying his attention. So, he secretly went inside the small hole that he, himself, only could fit.

He knew that it was bad to enter inside the academy without any permission from the Hokage. Hopefully, he would not be spotted by the teachers. Moreover, no one was inside the academy so he could freely explore around the place.

_Went to school _

_and I was very nervous _

_No one knew me, _

_No one knew me_

He did not care if he was stained with dirt from the hole that he created. He just wanted to enter inside the academy. He carefully jumped down from the ceiling to the floor. Finally, he was inside the academy. He did not bother to dust himself as he explored around the academy.

He was not afraid if he was alone, nevertheless, he was excited to see several classrooms filled with numerous tables and chairs. He wanted to know how someone should feel when they went to school, to sit on a chair, and to write on the blackboard by their own.

Not that he did these things at the orphanage but he wanted to feel the freedom as a normal kid. He was drowsing from his day dreams that he did not notice that a teacher was glaring and approaching at him.

_Hello teacher_

_tell me what's my lesson_

_Look right through me, _

_Look right through me_

The teacher tapped his foot to get the attention of the unwanted mischievous boy. The boy terribly heard the tapping of the feet. He knew he was in trouble as he looked at an angry teacher.

"Konnichiwa, sensei… hehehe" He weakly smiled and said to the teacher.

"Kid, what are you doing in here?" The teacher gave him a glare.

"Ano… just looking around" The boy replied.

"This is not a playground. Now scram before I call your caretaker"

"Hai!"

The boy ran off as he exited at the entrance. The boy kicked-off some stones on his path as he reached the Orphanage. The caretaker would not even notice that he went outside since he had already escaped several times.

Five days and four nights outside the Orphanage would not even bother the caretaker to check him if he was in his room. The caretaker eventually would be pleased that he was not around. Let him be gone so he, the caretaker, would have a less working problems. The boy did not want to go inside the Orphanage. He, alone, did not want a life without a freedom… without a real friend.

_And I find it kind of funny,_

_I find it kind of sad_

_The dreams in which I'm dying, _

_Are the best I've ever had_

Even though there were several orphans inside the house, he was left out. He has his own schedule, which was provided by the caretaker, of eating, sleeping, and playing. He wanted to play with the other orphans but he was restricted to do something else.

He entered inside of the Orphanage without any sermons from the caretaker. The caretaker only glared at him as he entered. Nothing usually happened as he went upstairs. He walked silently at the corridor as he went to his room.

The next morning, the boy woke up with a wet pillow on his head. He folded his futon and he quickly went downstairs so he could escape again. He easily escaped from the orphanage as he went outside. He looked back at the orphanage as he happily skipped backwards from the yard.

**Thud**

_I find it hard to tell you, _

_I find it hard to take_

_When people run in circles _

_it's a very very_

_Mad World, Mad World_

He fell on the ground as he bumped someone from behind. He nursed his buttocks as he had let a hand to support his balance. He saw a white and a red garb as he stood. An old man, who was also wearing a hat, was the one who lend his hand. The old man smiled at him as he weakly smiled in return.

"Naruto! Come back there!!!" The blond by whose name was Naruto was hiding behind the old man as the caretaker was calling for him.

"Young boy, why don't you go to your caretaker" The old man asked politely to the boy.

"I'm scared… I ran away for days… I don't want to be punished" The caretaker had spotted him as he approached towards them.

"Hokage-sama"

The caretaker greeted and bowed at the old man as he shifted his glare at Naruto. The boy suddenly flinched from the caretaker's glare. The old man observed the scene between the boy and the caretaker. He cleared his throat that brought the attention of the caretaker.

"Hokage-sama, thank goodness that you saw the boy" The caretaker worriedly explained.

The Hokage looked wary for the worry words of the caretaker. He shook his head once as he glanced at Naruto. The boy was scared that he was gripping his garb. The boy did not budge from his position. He sighed as he held the boy's hand. The caretaker was willingly to take the boy but the old man did not give the boy.

"I'll adopt him with a surname of Uzumaki"

The caretaker and the boy were astonished that the Hokage's statement. The caretaker led the way to the Orphanage House. He readily the papers for adoption as the Hokage signed them. The boy Naruto, now, with a surname of Uzumaki, was adopted. The boy widely smiled at the old man and the old man also smiled at him.

_  
Enlarging your world_

_Mad World_

-----------------------------The End-----------------------------

Last Notes: Sorry it's short and it has been edited again. **Please Review! **


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